Over eight million Australians suffer from a long-term health problem, with 2,231,543 (nearly one in 10) reporting a mental health condition, according to newly released Census 2021 results.
However, clinical psychiatrist Tanveer Ahmed says that although it is positive, more Australians are willing to speak out about mental health; he warns of an increasing willingness to treat even mild ailments as medical conditions needing treatment or professional advice.
The Census data found other significant long-term health problems to be arthritis (2,150,396 individuals) and asthma (2,068,020).
Unsurprisingly, as Australians got older, they were more likely to have a condition, with 62.9 percent of individuals over 65 reporting at least one condition compared to 22.1 percent of 15-34-year-olds….